Dr. Mohamed Yusuf Hassan: A Legacy of Courage and Compassion

Mogadishu (AX) — In a sun-drenched corner of Mogadishu, beneath a sky that seemed to hold its breath in reverence, friends, family, and colleagues gathered to bid farewell to a man whose unyielding dedication etched his name into the very fabric of Somali history. Dr. Mohamed Yusuf Hassan, a distinguished surgeon, was laid to rest—a man whose life intertwined intimately with the tumultuous narrative of his country.

Dr. Mohamed’s journey was not for the faint-hearted. The scalpel was his tool, yet courage was his true instrument. For decades, under dim surgical lights that flickered over Mogadishu’s chaos, he stood between life and death, navigating his way through the echoes of gunfire and turmoil. “There were days,” his son, Dr. Rooble Mohamed Yusuf, recalled with a blend of pride and sorrow, “when my father performed miracles with limited resources and limitless hope.”

Leading as the director of Medina Hospital during some of Somalia’s bloodiest chapters, including the Ethiopian military intervention, Dr. Mohamed was far more than a mere physician. He was a lifeline. His team, often stretched to their breaking points, learned from him not just the techniques of surgery, but the philosophies of resilience. Training fresh graduates amidst the chaos, he told them, “In this line of work, you not only patch wounds but hearts too.”

During Somalia’s most harrowing moments, like the 2017 Zoobe truck bombing, Dr. Mohamed and his team were the silent warriors. The President of Somalia, Hassan Sheikh Mohamud, aptly summed it up when he said, “Dr. Mohamed Yusuf Hassan was a cornerstone of our health sector—a beacon in our darkest hours.” He wasn’t just treating injuries; he was healing a nation.

“Inna Lillaahi Wa Inna Ilayhi Raji’un (To Allah we belong, and to Him we shall return). May Allah have mercy on Dr. Mohamed Yusuf.”

His early life in Afgooye, Lower Shabelle, was marked by a quest for knowledge—a trait that would remain with him throughout his life. Graduating in 1966, Mohamed’s thirst for learning led him to Italy, where he studied medicine with fervor, finishing in 1975 and specializing in surgery by 1980. Yet, his heart beckoned him back to the land of his roots, where his skills were not just needed, but essential.

The civil war upheaved many lives, including his. Amidst the discord, he served in Italy before his journey took him across Africa—from Eswatini to South Africa and Mozambique—sharing his knowledge and expanding his experience. But, a calling stronger than any attachment drew him back home in 2001. Standing firmly at the helm of Medina Hospital, he vowed to turn tragedy into teaching opportunities for fledgling doctors.

Dr. Mohamed’s commitment was unwavering—even when threats loomed large. In 2008, a brush with death did little to waver his resolve. Attacked by gunmen, his choice was not flight but fight; he drove through the ambush, unscathed. It was a testament to his indomitable spirit. The ICRC offered him safety abroad, but Somalia was his mission.

Each surgical gown he donned was like a knight’s armor in the battle of life against death. He knew that despite the darkness that enveloped Mogadishu, he was creating a legacy of hope. “His legacy,” says a doctor, now practicing in that very theater, “is not in the sutures that healed the flesh but in the spirits of determination and empathy he instilled in us all.”

Dr. Mohamed’s passing signifies more than the end of an era; it marks a profound milestone in a nation’s journey toward healing and recovery. His story raises a critical question for the world: In the face of relentless adversity, how far would you go for your homeland?